The Masters Saga
by The Green-Eyed Wolf
Summary: Now a master of inner peace and ready for the next step in his training, Po must join the Masters of the Jade Palace as they venture out to do battle against an enemy they know nothing about. But trust among the gang is put to the test when Tigress learns the truth and finally confronts the one who left her at the orphanage all those years ago. Rated T for future violence. No/slash
1. Prologue - Old Friends

A/N: I do not own Kung Fu Panda, or anything specifically connected to it including characters, locations, etc. Any of the characters and/or locations that are mentioned in this story and are not linked directly to the original DreamWorks' creation(s), in any way, are mine.

Well, finally! I did it! Yes! I have been, for _so long_, working on this story from start to finish. Now I know I said that before, and the time before that..and..the time before that (^_^), but I finally have a story that is worth completing. And it is gonna be AWESOME! (I really like how I turned everything out in the end.)

Anyway, I shall do my best, from here on out to update as much as I can, but sometimes there might be long delays (just giving you a fair warning) in the future. Please try and hang on, the upcoming chapters will be worth it – I've already started work on the next few as it is!

P.S. I'm looking for anyone on DeviantArt to help create a book cover/image for my story. Interested? Find the link to my Deviant page on my profile.

_Cheng Shi_ translates into 'honourable' (Yes, people, he's BACK! WOO!).

Let's get started!

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**Prologue – Old Friends**

Somewhere up high on the sloping face of a great mountainous ridge, perched at the tip of a small craggy outcropping looking out across the vast expanse of an open valley and flat, open plains of marsh fields below, there stood a tall and thick tree surrounded by patches of long wavering grass.

The tree itself leaned dangerously over the rim of the ledge; standing like a protector overseeing its kingdom from afar, and, despite its slumped look, the tree titled perfectly with peeled, ashen bark as white as fresh snow and crooked branches reaching up and out to the openness of the sky above.

Every inch its limbs spread out, laden with the rich bounty of ripe red apples. Pink blossom petals bloomed in magnificent beauty; presenting themselves upwards to the pale shine of the crescent moon, in the midsummer's night, and basking their rims so brightly in its white light the entire tree held a ghostly glow.

But, at the wonder of the tree's splendours, at the very tip of one of the tree's branches that stuck out far away over the hillside there hung a single petal, lonely and separated from the rest. The cerise of its fragile surface, once brimmed with the better finery of its brethren not so long before, showed fractures and flakes of what only remained.

Nevertheless, the petal clung on dearly, trying desperately to keep its place among the outgrowth against the cold night. Yet its efforts were in vain, and fate sought to snatch the blossom from its perch with a hard swipe from a passing gust. The blossom came off, knocked free from its perch and left adrift in the midnight air.

At the moment it became removed from the tree, two sharp eyes glowing eyes as golden as a rising sun watched, with an untiring stare, the petal dance in twirls and circles and other ways over the drop of the chasm.

The figure continuously gazed on, following the petal in its aimless movements. Then, so unexpectedly, another push came from the winds and blew the blossom back over the precipice. The onlooker blinked his wholesome yellow eyes at its sudden change in direction and could see is falling nearly done. He felt compelled, and lifting up a large furry paw, waited patiently as the petal slowly lay down in the middle of his palm.

The large figure gawked in silence at the petal, sitting in a plot of the long grass with a leg dangling over the edge; his entire begin overshadowed by the tree at his side. He did not mind the dark, not at all. His eyesight, despite the gloom all around, was always better in the dark.

The soft wrappings of his dark clothing, all lined with the rare trimmings of red hues, defined him well as a dignified citizen among the people of the valley; and across all of China, for that matter. The long, black hooded-cloak tied securely around his shoulders, flapping quietly in the breeze, only accentuating this fact.

The flat hilt of a straight sword's handle – a jian – rested contentedly in the crook of his neck. Its intricate dragon carvings crawling across the gold-plated inlay gleaming with as much viciousness as the glow of his bright eyes.

Quite unlike any of the other weaponry he had learned to use, this one sword remained on his possession at all times. It was incredibly special to him. The weapon was, as any swordsman who constructed his own blade would say, 'attuned to his very soul'. And so, much like his very self, the weapon was sharper and stronger and quicker than any other ever made.

However, it was none of these traits that proved why the sword held such significance in his eyes. Neither for the fact its blade was carved from the minerals of a meteorite that had fallen somewhere in the valley long ago. No. It was because of the countless years passed, its shiny, black blade had been stained with the memories and blood of his greatest enemy of all time.

The figure felt an overwhelming sense of accomplishment in this knowledge. And yet, even with all the self-indulged passion he could feel of this victory, a sting of sadness and terrible shame stabbed away deep inside of him at his core.

_Had things only turned out so differently,_ he always thought to himself,_ had they not gone the way they did! Then..perhaps, the valley would be much happier – for everyone._

The figure closed his eyes tightly and burrowed his head into his chest, abhorring the painful truth behind his sadness.

And his anger.

He could feel his body shake, trembling, and the sting of slaty tears in the cold winds welling in his eyes. _No,_ he willed himself, _I must be strong. For the valley, for myself._ But the strength of his feelings were too weighed with grief for him to keep them at bay. The figure clutched to the sheath of his jian tightly; resting the front of his forehead against its, as though its cold touch would give him some comfort from his distress.

"Still hiding away where the world cannot see you, but you can see it, eh?" A warm and affable voice spoke from behind him. "Feeling separated from society, hmm?"

How dare someone say that to him! The figure's eyes sprung open and he turned with a snarl to whoever it was that had snuck up on him. But his irritation softened when he saw the familiar shape of a Tibetan sand fox ascend the last few steps leading onto the stone landing.

"Oh, Cheng Shi." The figure said, surprised, through a hoarse and low voice. "I didn't know it was you. Sorry for the snarl, there."

The fox, so aptly named Cheng Shi, waved a small sandy-coloured paw about the air dismissively. "Ah, forget about it, old friend. I'm sorry I didn't make you aware of my coming. I've been searching half the valley, looking for you." The fox gave a brief look about the platform. "In hindsight I think this is where I should have come first, eh?" He beamed a friendly smile.

The figure chuckled lightly I response. "Sorry for the game of 'Hide and Seek'," the grin then faded quickly from his face, "I..I felt like being alone tonight."

"I know. You do it every year." The fox acknowledged. "I can go, if you want me to?"

Did he really want the canine to leave? The figure was unsure. Cheng Shi had always been a sort of companion to him. He could always place a smile upon his face, even in times of great dismay. But the figure felt a greater need for the solace of his loneliness as it seemed, in some other manner, consoling.

In the end, Cheng Shi beat him to it. "I can see that another petal has fallen from its perch, hmm?" The figure was confused for a moment by his colleague's words, having still been lost in the mists of his own thoughts.

He then looked down to where the fox motioned, unfurling his claws to see the remnants of what now was the lonely, and crushed, blossom petal. "Oh, yes. Yes." The figure whispered as he lifted his paw and gradually titled it, letting the flakes fall and be taken away in the breeze. "One more life for one more petal fallen. I guess we lost another, then, tonight?"

Cheng Shi nodded in agreement. "The soul of any life must live on." He stepped forward and became shrouded in the shadow of the tree. One of his large, black ear titled hung folded over itself, yet both cocked towards the flakes as they vanished from sight. "Hmm. Do you think that it could be him this time? Eh?" The figure, watching the blossom flecks along with his friend, grew tense and rigid. His tail lashed out at the ground. "No, no. I suppose not, then. You're right." The canine answered for him when he saw how the figure silently reacted. "I'm sure it would be something of..of a miracle for that to happen so suddenly and unexpectedly after all this time, right?"

The figure flared his nose and scoffed, lowering his paw. "Hmph! More like a blessing in disguise!"

"I suppose so.." Cheng Shi sighed reluctantly. His attention turned briefly to the trunk of the white tree. He laid a paw against its twisted ashen bark. "Some say the tree is not always right. In fact, I'm pretty sure that _we_ would know _before_ the tree did. Still," he patted it softly, "another day passes, and another soul is lost to us and the valley. Heh. Y'know, sometimes I wonder why I continue to bother coming up to this place anymore. Peaceful and soothing it may be, seeing the tree only reminds to accept that we can _never_ stop people from dying." His eyes found the figure's back briefly. "No matter how hard we try to save them."

"You make it sound as if coming here is a blight of all things, old friend." The figure now spoke though a stern and unsympathetic tone. His sharp irises pulled to the fox and fixed him with a stare colder than the air about the two of them. "Need I ever to remind someone like you, Cheng Shi, someone, who, in many ways, is true to his very name, of the oath we swore to upkeep. The promise: to protect this valley and all who dwell here in peace from the threat of the perilous and unjust – past, present and future!"

"Of course not, old friend, but –"

"Too many have already died because of us! Well, I for one have seen enough. The valley and its people should not have to suffer for our failure to uphold that promise, not any longer. I plan to see that no such failure like what has happened before will ever occur again!" The figure whipped his head back out to over the ledge and stared intensely down on the thousand of lanterns of the city glowing so far below.

His grip tightened on the jian as the violent flashes of memories descended down over his eyes. _I made another promise, once, long ago. I made a promise to him, and to.._her._ I swore, to the both of them! …I swore._

Cheng Shi bit his lip warily. "You live too much in your own anger. You let it control you too easily."

"_I _have a duty to do!" The figure shouted through clenched fangs. The fur across his body bristled, showing the fox how aggravated he was. Cheng Shi took a slight step back. "And so do you. We have to stay strong to our responsibilities, or else..it..it would have all been in vain. For nothing. Don't you see that..?" The anger was gone but the sorrow still remained.

Cheng Shi waited quiet for a long moment, saying nothing. But soon he found the will to speak and what he said next held as much gravity as it did truth. "Not everyone can be saved, not all the time. You know this better than anyone else in the entire valley." The figure said nothing in return. "And you know that all we can do is learn to with the knowledge that there are hundreds, if not thousands of people in this valley alone, whom we have protected and saved from a life of suffering and pain. All _because_ of what we did for them. We were brought up to accept and live in that truth. Even if it meant that such a reality was so fleeting to us it seemed like a dream passing by. Again, you know this! So why go on? What will it bring us?" Cheng Shi then paused for a second, or two. "What will it bring _you_?"

The figure still said nothing for a long while; sitting motionless while the wind brushed through the thickness of his brilliant fur. Then he chuckled and this, in turn, baffled Cheng Shi. "You have no idea how much you sound like _her_, Cheng Shi." The fox's ears instantly fell flat against his head. The figure sighed and lowered his chin into his chest, resting his head once more against the scabbard of his sword. "I will not stop, Cheng Shi. I can't. Not until I know that she forgives me for what I have done. Only then will I bring peace to her and my family once and for all."

Cheng Shi once again stood in silence behind his colleague, unsure of what he could say in reply to such comments. _What can I say? He compared me to _her_! _The very thought itself made the fox sigh heavily. But he knew, honestly, that there was very little he could say in return.

Resolved, Cheng Shi turned away from the tree and towards the stairs from where he came up. But before he took the first step down, a small frown creased his nose and flattened his ears further against his head. "For your sake, old friend, I hope you mean _all_ of your family." He then left and began the descent down along the stone steps lining the face of the great mountain.

And even though his mind swirled with the thoughts and feelings of his actions to come, Cheng Shi did not once steal a glance back to his old friend sitting, alone, atop the craggy precipice.

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A/N: Friendships always last, or do they? Nah, they do...or do they? Either way, it's only the beginning guys. Don't forget that I love any thorough reviews submitted. I need to know what your thinking in those heads of yours. PM me if you so wish - I'll get back to you as soon as I can.

And now I'll say good night in Wolfish, 'Ehem..AWOO!'


	2. Lies and Nightmares

_Cí_ means 'compassionate/gentle'.

**Chapter One – Lies and Nightmares**

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The silence haunting the Jade Palace was eerie and meek, but calm; wrought only by the hollow whistling of the cold winds that whispered the slow crawling of a frosty autumn approaching from the oncoming weeks. A pale and weary blue light bathed over the Palace, flooding it in a shallow but all-together bleak hue.

In his chambers, Grandmaster Shifu gasped for air as if he had escaped from drowning. The sharp and dilated sapphires of his eyes snapped open as a small, wan hand clamped itself against his bare, furry chest and clutched tightly at the area above his heart that thumped fiercely like a beating drum. Pulses of adrenaline coursed throughout his veins, bringing a sense of reality to the old master's bones.

Shifu faltered but he steadied himself with a hand against the mat upon which he sat. A rush of nausea washed over him. He closed his eyes and sucked in a shaken deep breath, trying to calm his hyperventilating. Eventually his ragged breaths soon settled and Shifu pushed forward as he folded, resting his elbows on his crossed thighs, and placing his head into his hands as he tried to comprehend what had just happened.

"Ugh!" He groaned. _A dream, _he concluded, _it was just another dream – another nightmare._

Another groan of despair slipped from between his lips and Shifu thought for a moment he was going to cry, but his will held him strong against faltering to such actions. Running his fingers through his fur, Shifu could feel the cold sweat dousing his skin. He removed his hands and stared down at them with thin, pursed lips. _They're getting worse._

The old Palace Keeper sighed heavily and twitched one of his large ears. It was not the intention when one were to meditate, to fall asleep in the process, as a cognitive consciousness was required; but, despite his best efforts, Shifu realized that somewhere along the line he had collapsed into a deep sleep. He could not, however, remember when.

Now the terror of the horrible dream he had just endured lingered over him, and Shifu felt more guilty and scared than ashamed to this truth.

"Again, and again I endure this nightmare," he said to himself in a hush, "always the same dream – the same damn nightmare!" Shifu's gaze rose up to the wall before him; a large painting portraying the deceased Master Oogway, once his mentor and greatest friend, hung limp. It showed the thousand-year-old tortoise relaxing, composed in humble rumination beneath the Sacred Peach Tree, and, as always, beaming a soft and most sincere smile in the sunlight.

"Ugh! What good is sleep if all you have are the nightmares that wait to wake you back up again?" He asked the sketching, as if he believed it would reply in some witty, albeit helpful way. "How did you do it?" Nothing happened. Shifu's nose twisted foully.

"Hmph!" He looked away from the wall and furrowed his brow, feeling as though he were being ignored. He sighed again, at once knowing that the idea was childish and absurd. "I envy you, you know, I always did? I could never fathom where you found the strength to carry on," he soon whispered, "but I..I cannot go on living this lie anymore."

Oogway smiled on in the painting. Shifu faced the picture full on, pressing harder. "Without your guidance, Master, I am lost. Without you..I fear..I fear this burden may be too great for me to bear alone. I'll fail my promise, and it will lead to the ruin of all I have held so close to my heart. I don't know what is my destiny anymore – if it still is what I once thought it to be! But I know..I will not survive much longer, not unless I can find the strength that you had. So I beg of you, my friend," Shifu bowed his head and clamped his eyes tightly shut, "give me the strength I need to uphold my word, just for a little longer."

_For me,_ he added the last part in silent plea; his ears gradually falling against his head. The red panda felt alone in the emptiness of his chambers, knowing that there was nothing but the echoes of his unheard prayer to comfort him.

_For the both of us.._

The painting of Oogway waved slightly as gusts of wind from the open windows slipped in and ran beneath it, but the former Grandmaster's grin never faltered. His smile would forever live on, grinning as if his lips held some great secret that would never be openly shared.

* * *

After what seemed almost like a lifetime of sitting in the murky silence of his room, Shifu rose up onto his feet and began to don his brown, cotton robe. He stood facing out of the main large window of his on the east side of cabin, focusing down his attention as he wrapped the russet sash around the closed folds of his robe. He secured it tight; feeling the fabric constrict around his abdomen but leaving enough room should the need to move more drastically be called upon.

Tying the last of the knot's folds away, Shifu smoothed out the creases in his wear and stopped to heave a warm breath when he saw how his hands still shook slightly. He turned them palm up to his eyes and inspected them fiercely, thinking his glare would cease their infernal twitching. In the end, he curled his lean fingers and flexed them repeatedly – finding this to be more consequential.

Shifu hummed through his throat in understanding, annoyance, and infamy. He had believed for so long that the sensation inside him would settle somewhere into a small corner of his mind's eye, but every time he tried to fight it away the feeling would only come back clawing and biting him tenfold.

It was the same reason why he woke in such a fright. And the very same cause to his not sleeping so peacefully, or, as it were, sleeping well enough. Every night for the past endurance of nearly thirty years, he would wake in a cold sweat; inevitably searching his room for the presence of something that was never there. Yet, the haunting feeling that he was being stared down upon by a pair of unseen, fiery, scrutinizing eyes could never be shaken from Shifu's thoughts.

Then, when he ever thought that he was safe from that horrifying impression, the remorse would crush his refuge. And the ironic thing, however, was that Shifu knew why and who it was that he felt so fearful of.

Even now it was like an avalanche, falling fast and burying him deep into the ground. _Oogway, _please_, give me the strength.._The deliberation of the thoughtful appeal was only ever temporary.

Determined to focus his mind elsewhere, Shifu lifted his gaze out past the pane of his window and stared at the razor ridge of the mountains encircling the Valley of Peace.

The sun had not risen yet, but the fans of golden sunlight spraying across the mauve skyline told Shifu that morning would soon arrive to the Valley. There was an overbearing temptation to slip back into his bed. To forget the world and let his mind shut down on itself so that he could find some peace in his solitude as he once did. In truth, he hadn't really had much reason to be awake so early as it were, even before his failed meditation attempt and the terrifying dream!

The lure was thrown aside in a single glance out the corner of his eye. Shifu flared his nose in abhorrence. _There is nothing for me in sleep but pain and suffering..and lies!_ He turned away from the opening with a 'humph' and limped across to the other side of his room to the small desk standing in amongst a sea of piled-up scrolls, charts, maps and other parchments.

He reached out and lifted the scroll that had been addressed to him recently from an arrival a few days earlier. He skimmed across the page, reading the pinyin inscrolled thereon. _The Five and panda should be returning today. I guess that is as good as reason as any to stay a trip back to bed, especially for me now. _

Relief flooded Shifu as he made his decision. Tossing the scroll casually back onto the bureau Shifu gave another fleeting leer out to the horizon once more. _I should be there for when they arrive. Perhaps it'll do me some good to see their return._ It was the best hope he could ask for right now.

There was a sudden rapid tapping at the screen door of his room. "Grandmaster Shifu? Master Shifu."

Shifu's ears pulled to the door and his eyes quickly followed; a familiar silhouette shuffling feverously on the other side in the dim lighting instantly told Shifu who it was calling him.

_And the new day begins_. Pacing over to the door, Shifu slid the panel aside and stood before the Palace messenger goose. "Zeng," Shifu addressed, placing his hands behind his back, with a small cordial smile, "I trust that whatever reason you have to be here is highly important?"

The nervy avian fiddled with the satchel slung across his shoulder anxiously. "Y-yes, Master Shifu," he nodded his beak promptly, "I..I have two visitors awaiting your presence inside the Sacred Hall. They..they said they were from the Forbidden City."

_The Forbidden City?!_ It had been the least expected name to fall from the goose's bill. "What?! What do you mean 'from the Forbidden City?" Shifu sternly inquired through steeped eyebrows as he advanced forward, hands clenched tensely at his side. "Is it the Emperor? The Empress – who?!"

Zeng waddled back for every step Shifu took towards him, his long neck leaning far back from Shifu's demanding stare. "Uh." He swallowed. "Er. The..the..it's Masters Cí and Great..Great Master Viper, Master Shifu. They arrived at the Palace gates just a few minutes ago."

Shifu blinked his stunned blue eyes. "What are they doing here?" He murmured beneath his breath, aloud.

Thinking that Shifu was talking to him, Zeng spoke in return. "I..I'm not sure, Grandmaster." He replied, his wings gripping the strap of his satchel with unnatural strength surged by his behavioural fretfulness. "They said that you had been expecting them for some time. I..I thought that you knew."

_This is most unexpected!_ _And surely of no good._ "No, no..I had not, Zeng." Shifu pensively turned away from the messenger and gradually stroked his small grey beard in profundity. "Ah, did either of them tell you what it is they wished to speak to me about?"

Zeng shook his head from side to side. "N-no, Master Shifu, I..I tried to tell them that you would not be out of bed at this early hour in the morning. I opted for them to pass on whatever they wished to tell you through me, but they said it was for your ears only." A faint colour crossed Zeng's face and he looked down almost shamefully. "They told me to wake you, Grandmaster. I had to follow their instructions."

Shifu let out a long breath through the end of his nose, a white spray of warm vapour curling around his muzzle. He waved a hand sluggishly at Zeng, "Ah, you..you need not worry, Zeng. You were in your right place. Thank you for telling me this. I must meet them, _at once._" Shifu pivoted on his heels and moved past Zeng in a powerful and purposeful march through the length of the corridor. "Upon their arrival, inform me when the Five and the Dragon Warrior return." He added over his shoulder.

"Of course, Master Shifu," the goose bowed at the waist. He rose as quickly as he fell. "Oh! B-but, Master, I have a–"

Shifu did not listen. "Until I say otherwise I am not to be disturbed. No-one is to enter the Hall until they have my permission or say to do so." He commanded. "Especially not even the Dragon Warrior!"

Zeng could not remember the last time he had seen Shifu so overwrought and uneasy. "But..but, Grandmaster Shifu I..I-" He hastily stuck a wing into the depths of his bag and pulled out a single scroll. With it raised in the air and held out to Shifu, he ran after the red panda, attempting to give him the parchment.

"I have..I have something..I was instructed..to give.. to..you.." Zeng stopped at the top of the stairs. The Grandmaster was long gone from the lonesome corridor. "Uh, Master Shifu?"


End file.
